The outdoor portion of the Osborn Aquatic Center has reopened for limited use this spring, as millions in state funding have been requested to fund roof repairs.

The Osborn Aquatic Center was closed in October of 2024 after the discovery of a corroded roof during regular facility maintenance. 

The facility’s closure has impacted local swim teams, including the Corvallis Aquatic Team, which uses the pool for practices. It has also affected the scheduling of regional swim meets, swim lessons, and other pool activities and events. 

Additionally, the pool’s closure has had financial implications for Corvallis, which gains $1.5 million annually from tourism driven by Osborn’s swim meets.  

Currently, there is no timeline for reopening the indoor portion of the pool. According to the city of Corvallis’ website, the outdoor portion of the pool was reopened for use in early March, and swim team practice, lap swimming, exercise classes, and other activities have since resumed in the outdoor portion of the pool. 

An estimated cost of repairs for the facility has not been determined. A Portland-based architecture firm, Scott Edwards Architecture, was hired in April to assess facility damages further and determine the cost of repairs.

While a comprehensive cost estimate is still being determined, the City of Corvallis has requested $5 million in state funding from the Capital Construction Fund for facility repairs from State Sen. Sara Geiser-Blouin, D-8, who represents the Corvallis and Albany areas. 

The Capital Construction Fund provides support for one-time infrastructure projects unrelated to deferred maintenance across Oregon and is allocated by the Capital Construction Committee. This legislative session, the fund has $500 million available for projects. 

But with over $2 billion in requested funding for projects, getting a slice of the limited available funds is not guaranteed. The ultimate allocation of the committee’s budget will not be made until the end of the state legislative session this summer. 

According to Geiser-Blouin, there has been an outpouring of support for funding to fix the roof from across the state of Oregon and the western region. 

Geiser-Blouin’s office and those of her colleagues in the state senate have received hundreds of letters from across the state and region in support of the funding, with support for repairs coming from as far as Nevada and Hawaii.

“We’ve had, I think, almost 80 people come into the (capital) building and go and have one-to-one meetings with legislators that are on the committee, or because they live in districts of other folks, asking them to go talk to the committee,” Gelser-Blouin said.

“So if we do not get this money, it will not be for lack of a truly exceptional effort on the part of so many people.”

Support for repairs has also come from the Corvallis Aquatic Team, statewide drowning prevention professionals at Oregon Health Sciences University, the City of Corvallis, the School Boards Association, the Oregon State Athletics Association and the Special Olympics of Oregon, among other groups.

Geiser-Blouin emphasized the importance of the funding for the Corvallis community and the state as a whole, noting that the Osborn Aquatic Center is one of the top three swimming centers on the West Coast. 

She also highlighted that the facility serves the community in various other ways, including as an affordable meal distribution center for the Corvallis School District over the summer. 

According to Geiser-Blouin, in addition to serving the local community, the aquatic center regularly draws athletes from dozens of miles away to swim practices at the Olympic-sized pool and large regional swim meets.

“The way that they manage it, they’re able to make it affordable for families in the region to be able to get swimming lessons or participate in summer recreation. They do a lot of adaptive swimming for seniors and people with disabilities,” Geiser-Blouin said. 

“So it’s a very, very well-used facility by huge segments of our community on a daily basis, and then on the evenings and the weekends, you just have this massive number of people coming into our community from all across the state and the region.” 

Even with the $5 million in state funding requested for facility repairs, additional funding will likely be needed to cover the cost of the repairs. According to Geiser-Blouin, the funding would help kickstart the repair process. 

“If this funding is made available, the district and the city can get to work more quickly to start the first phase of the work while they raise private funds and look at bonding to complete the rest of the project,” Geiser-Blouin said.

“Our community will step up and really take on the bulk of it. But given that it is a statewide resource, we are asking the state for some help, because it really does benefit swimmers of all ages all across the state.”

As the facility waits for funding to begin repairs, efforts to reopen additional recreation opportunities remain ongoing.

The Capital Construction Committee has yet to decide on the allocation of funding for the Osborn Aquatic Center. Individuals interested in voicing their thoughts on the project can reach out to their state representatives and send a letter to the Capital Construction Committee.